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Newly identified neoplasm on lower pole of left kidney
Following an unrelated MRI for back degeneration as a 52yr old otherwise healthy male, I was informed of a potentially important mass on my left kidney (16mm). Following an abdomen specific MRI 6 weeks later with and without contrast, strong suggestion of neoplasm isolated to let kidney, with only 25% or less likelihood of being benign. Following radiology and urology consult, I have requested partial nephrectomy given the challenges of Biopsy, the inclusive outcomes of ablation and my unwillingness to wait and watch given my age and those of my young sons. Scheduled mid-September as laparoscopic non-robotic supported surgery following labs and CT scans. Any medical or personal feedback appreciated on proposed.
While I realize small and decent treatment options, I can not sleep and am stressed non stop which needless to say impacts my wife and young boys.
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Hello!
I am not a doctor. My comments refer to Renal Cell Carcinoma.
I too was otherwise healthy at age 60 (3 years ago) when a lung scan prompted further imaging. The MRI disclosed a mass, but on my right kidney, and it was about 5.08 cm (50.08 mm). My doctor said it had likely been there several years. I was told it needed to come out regardless, so I had partial (robotic) nephrectomy removing 5% of the kidney. There was never any mention of laparoscopic surgery for me. My understanding is that the majority of patients that catch Renal Cell Carcinoma early (stage 1, < 7 cm) can be cured.
Having said that, now 3 years later a smaller 2 cm (20 mm) tumor came back, somewhat near the previous one. They zapped it with microwave thermal ablation in April, and will look at it (MRI) again in December. The cool thing about thermal ablation is that when it kills the tissue, it leaves it there for your immune system to discover. Before that, my immune system had no way of knowing anything about the identity of those cancerous cells. It’s not fact certain, but it is believed that once the immune system knows more about what it’s fighting, it adapts to recognize the cancer in the future. Did I mention I’m not a doctor?
Anyhow, I know you must be quite worried- I was too, and I had a much bigger tumor than yours. Having cancer is scary and heart wrenching, but they have come so far with different treatments. I recently asked my Urologist about my chances to live 15 more years. He said he thinks immunotherapy will change everything in the near future, so he said he thought I was good for at least 20 or more!
Some other tips. 1) Stay positive and keep your sense of humor- cancer hates that! 2) If you’re overweight- lose it. Cancer loves fat. 3) Eat only the sugar that naturally come from a healthy diet. Cancer loves sugar!! 4) Don’t take vitamins without talking to your doctor first. Too much of some may feed the cancer’s growth. (I take vitamin C, 500mg gummy daily, and D3, 2000 IU three times a week. Your needs may be different!!)
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1 ReactionThanks so much. Really appreciate the personal experience and positive feedback. The journey is just beginning for me & I need to go through the steps of understanding and dealing with this.